Quintus Caecilius Metellus

Quintus Caecilius Metellus (c. 250 BC – 175 BC) was a pontiff in 216 BC, aedile of the plebeians in 209 BC, curule aedile in 208 BC, magister equitum in 207 BC, consul in 206 BC, dictator in 205 BC, proconsul of Bruttium in 204 BC, and an ambassador at the court of Philip V of Macedon in 185 BC. He served as a legate in the army of Gaius Claudius Nero and fought in the war against Hannibal. He was a political ally of Scipio Africanus, the man who eventually defeated Hannibal. He was also distinguished as an orator, the funeral sermon he pronounced at his father's funeral being counted amount his best speeches. He was the father of Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus and Lucius Caecilius Metellus Calvus. Family Background Quintus Caecilius Metellus was the son of Lucius Caecilius Metellus, a successful general who defeated Hasdrubal at Panormus in the First Punic War. Both father and son were members of the famed gens Caecilia, a powerful plebeian family of the late Republic.